The invention relates generally to bale processors, and more particularly to square bale processors.
Crop materials, such as straw, hay or other forage are often baled in order to protect the material and make it easy to move and store at an appropriate location. When the material is to be used for feed or bedding, the bales must be transported to the location where they are required, broken apart and distributed in some desirable manner.
Over the years, a number of bale processors have been developed which are capable of loading and processing round bales. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 302,280 filed on Apr. 30, 1999 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,199,781 on Mar. 13, 2001; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 303,263 filed on Apr. 30, 1999 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,109,553 on Aug. 29, 2000; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 312,570 filed on Apr. 30, 1999 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,950 on Mar. 20, 2001, which are incorporated herein by reference, describe a variety of such bale processors. These bale processors disintegrate bales and discharge the material either as bedding across an area, or as feed in the form of a windrow or into a feed bunk.
These and other similar bale processors are particularly adapted to process round bales and are capable of carrying one large bale to the location where the material is required. In order to process more then one bale, it is necessary for the bale processor to return to where the bales are stored or to have a second machine with a front end loader bring the bales to the processor.
A bale processor designed to carry more than one round bale at a time is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,191 which issued to Dwyer et al on Apr. 14, 1987. This particular bale processor includes an elongated conveyor pivotally mounted about its wheel axle such that the back end will pivot towards the ground enabling the conveyor to move a number of bales onto itself However, in this particular arrangement the shredding rollers are at one side of the processor and a further assembly is required to move the front bale laterally into the shredding rollers. The result is a cumbersome arrangement which is not particularly effective for the loading and processing square bails or for discharging the bale material as desired.
Therefore, there is a need for a processor which is capable of self loading, carrying a number of bales to where the bale material is needed and processing the bales effectively, particularly when the bales are of the large square variety.
The invention is directed to a bale processor comprising a frame having front and back ends, an elongated conveyor mounted on the frame and a mechanism for mounting the frame to a set of wheels. The wheel mechanism also functions to move the back end of the conveyor between positions a predetermined distance above the ground and adjacent to the ground. The bale processor further includes a bale shredding roller which has a front end and a back end and which is rotatably mounted adjacent the front end of the conveyor. The axis of rotation of the shredding roller is positioned in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to the conveyor in the direction of the length of the processor; the roller axis at the back end of the roller is positioned below the front end of the conveyor. The processor further includes a conveyor control to operate the conveyor in either direction.
In accordance with another aspect of this invention, the conveyor includes two or more chain conveyors mounted substantially parallel to one another along the length of the processor. All of the chain conveyors may be of equal length or some of the chain conveyors may be substantially shorter than others.
With regard to another aspect of the invention, one or more feed rollers may be mounted transversely to the frame above the shredding roller for assisting to drive a bale onto the shredding roller. The roller may include auger fins or beater bars to grip into a bale.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention the bale shredding roller may be substantially cylindrical or it may be in the shape of a truncated cone with flails symmetrically spaced about its circumference and along its length. The bale shredding roller axis may be substantially horizontal or it may slope upward from the back end of the shredding roller to the front end of the roller. Specifically, the bale shredding roller may comprise an axle, a cylindrical drum fixed to the axis, a plurality of circular plates spaced along the axle; and a number of flails rotatably mounted symmetrically between the plates along the length of the axle. The diameter of the circular plates may be substantially equal or the diameter of adjacent circular plates may be sequentially smaller from the front end towards the back end of the shredding roller. In addition, the bale shredding roller may further include a number of curvilinear fins fixed to the hub between the smallest circular plate and the back end of the shredding roller.
In accordance with a further aspect of this invention, the mechanism for mounting the frame on wheels which are rotatably fixed to an axle may comprise at least two support members spatially positioned between the frame and the wheel axle with one end of each support member being fixed to the axle and the other end of each support member being pivotally attached to the frame whereby the wheels may be pivoted about the frame attachment for lowering and raising the back end of the conveyor. The pivoting movement between the frame and the wheels may be controlled by hydraulic cylinders.